February 19 2008 Motorsports Newsletter

Hi everyone,

Another newsletter installment with details of some of the topics going on this week.

In the news:

• Super Aguri have been hitting the headlines this week, due to their money struggles. The team lost important sponsors last year and have not managed to find any investment yet. They've delayed the launch of their new car and missed out on a lot of valuable testing time. If they make it to the grid in Australia, they are already on the back foot.

• Racism was an unfortunate talking point recently, with Lewis Hamilton suffering at the hands of some abusers in Spain. The so-called Alonso fans made fun of Hamilton until they were thrown out of the circuit and the McLaren garage was closed off. The FIA responded immediately and have launched a new campaign called "Racing Against Racism." McLaren were one of the first teams to sign up, but many others followed.

• Testing continues, with the most recent tests starting in Barcelona and Valencia today. It's been wet in Spain today which has hampered the teams, but it's hoped to brighten up later in the week.

Super'>http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art55454.asp">Super Aguri's Financial Struggles - Super Aguri are one of the smallest teams on the grid, and despite being backed by Honda, they are having some financial difficulties at the moment. Here I talk about what those problems are and what effect they might have on the team in 2008.

This time round: Poor Super Aguri are the latest in a long line of Formula 1 teams who have sunk under the financial weight of participating in the sport. Do you think Formula 1 will end up as a manufacturer only team? Or do you think there will be a resurgance of independent teams? I think if things stay as they are, F1 will end up as the playing ground for car makers, and billionaires who have nothing better to do with their money.

That's it for this newsletter. I hope to hear from you sometime soon, either in the forum or in response to this email message. I thrive on your feedback!

Have fun passing this message along to family and friends, because we all love free knowledge!